NADAL TO MISS ATP FINALS BECAUSE OF ANKLE SURGERY

Tennis star Rafael Nadal is to have ankle surgery after confirming he will miss the ATP Finals because of injury.
The Spaniard pulled out of the Paris Masters with an abdominal injury and after failing to recover in time, has now withdrawn from next week’s event in London.

He was scheduled to have a procedure to remove a floating body from his ankle on Monday in a bid to be fit for the start of the new season.

In a post on his official Facebook page, Nadal said: ‘It has been a complicated year, very good at the tennis level when I was able to play, and at the same time very bad as far as injuries are concerned.

‘I have done everything possible to reach the end of the season in good condition, both in Paris and London, doing things well and I really wanted to play.

‘Unfortunately, I had the abdominal problem in Paris last week and, in addition, I have a free body in the ankle joint that has to be removed in the operating room today.’